


One More Tomorrow

by Acadjonne



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games), Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Genre: Also music from Fallout because that's gotta sneak up on me at some point, Dancing, Love Confessions, M/M, Mentions of Kingdom Hearts characters and events, Specifically Riku does and it's a good thing, THERE WAS ONLY ONE BED, There's so many references here that I can't tag them all, Toontown, listen no one else wrote a fic about Sora meeting Roger Rabbit so it fell upon me to do so, oh hey wait, talking about feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:15:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26310247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Acadjonne/pseuds/Acadjonne
Summary: Toontown was King Mickey’s suggestion, really.They’ve been invited out dancing, of all things. Riku would never admit to feeling nervous about the invitation, although he knows nothing will come of it. He never had the courage to tell Sora how he feels, even when it mattered most. How could he admit he’s in love in a California dance hall, aftereverything?
Relationships: Dolores/Eddie Valiant, Jessica Rabbit/Roger Rabbit, Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 15
Kudos: 53





	1. One More Tomorrow

**Author's Note:**

> This started out with me wanting to experience Sora and Roger being happy-go-lucky idiot gremlins together and it turned real gay in a hurry. I have no one to blame but myself for this.

Toontown was King Mickey’s suggestion, really.

He chuckles as he helps them enter the coordinates of the World into the gummiship’s computer. “I have some old friends there,” he admits with a smile, “from some of my own trips.”

It turns out Donald and Goofy have vacationed there too. Goofy reminisces on it with Sora the night before he leaves, telling him about some trouble he found himself in the middle of, and the pair of detective brothers who helped him out of it. 

Valiant, he claims their names were, and tells Sora that they’re always ready to help if he needs it. Donald, on the other hand, grows grumpy at the mention, and grumbles something about a piano and a little black duck. Sora doesn’t pry with that one, although he does wonder if Donald is any good at playing the piano.

Riku, for the most part, seems indifferent, although he does admit he’d heard a bit about Toontown from Mickey in passing. “He said he was friends with a rabbit, or maybe it was an insect? Apparently he was a lot of trouble.”

They don’t encounter any trouble getting there, at least. Riku’s piloting of the gummiship is smooth and precise, and even the landing is pleasant, although they don’t look to be anywhere near the Toontown that King Mickey described to them. Everything just looks very brick and mortar and concrete, the rundown and back alley streets of a big city, although it’s dirtier than San Fransokyo was when Sora saw it. Wherever they are is nearly as sunny and warm as San Fransokyo was, at least.

The biggest indicator for where they are is an empty looking building with a faded white sign reading ACME, which sounds at least a bit familiar. King Mickey mentioned a factory being near Toontown, practically on top of it, really, although this doesn’t look like much of a factory more than just a warehouse. The emptiness of it is eerie as well, although it doesn’t stop Sora from opening the door and wandering inside.

Riku shakes his head as he follows. Leave it to Sora to wander off blindly.

Inside the building is about as dusty as could be expected, given it’s abandoned appearance. The far wall at the very back of the building is nearly entirely gone, and sections of the roof seem to be ready to fall around it at any moment. 

Bright colours and swaying trees exist beyond the gaping hole, and the only word Riku can think of to describe them is  _ drawn _ . They move just as naturally as he and Sora do, and Riku’s is almost entirely sure that they’re  _ singing _ . Sora seems to have caught onto this too, rushing towards them with a gleeful grin.

“Riku, come on!” Sora calls over his shoulder, “Riku!” With a glance behind him to ensure Riku is following, Sora heads towards the colourful landscape.

Riku catches up to Sora once the grassy hills and swaying, hugging trees give way to something similar to a street, with lopsided buildings and chaos abound. Some of the buildings have  _ faces _ , which watch Sora and Riku curiously. Maybe because they’re strangers, or maybe because they don’t look quite as unreal as their surroundings. All at once, though, Riku doesn’t have time to wonder, because he nearly knocks Sora down when he walks straight into him. He barely manages to keep them both upright as his eyes catch what’s stopped Sora in his tracks.

A white rabbit approaches, in red overalls and yellow gloves, a blue and yellow dotted bow tie around his neck. He’s fumbling his balance on top of a barrel labeled  _ TURPENTINE _ , eyes wide as he realizes which direction he’s headed. Which happens to be  _ directly  _ toward Riku and Sora. 

Riku tugs them out of the way just as the rabbit jumps off the barrel, and somehow, the three of them all go careening in the same direction. Riku ends up at the bottom of the pile, with the rabbit on his back and Sora on top of the rabbit, laughing as if he doesn’t have a care in the world. Sora stands quickly, and reaches to help the rabbit up, freeing Riku in the process. Sora’s hands come away dripping yellow, and Riku imagines his own jacket probably isn’t in much better shape.

“Jeez, fellas, sorry about that!” The rabbit says, giving them both a once over as if to ensure they’re okay. Sora shakes his head, a smile still on his face.

“We’re okay! Right, Riku?” And that smile turns to Riku, beaming as brightly as ever. Riku finds himself smiling softly back, and nodding.

“Yeah, no harm done,” Riku assures the rabbit. He nods, although he still looks sheepish.

“It’s my own fault,” the rabbit admits, bringing a gloved hand (paw?) up to rub at his neck. “Eddie told me to wait for him to get back, but he’s gonna be gone for days! I just wanted to make sure everyone was okay. We don’t need any more Dip.”

There’s an odd sort of emphasis on that last word, although the rabbit doesn’t actively seem to put any pressure on the word. Riku clearly hears the capital D in the word, though, and he’s sure Sora does too. 

“Dip?” Sora asks, tilting his head. The rabbit just shakes his head at them.

“Nothing to worry about, I promise! Totally empty barrel, no turpentine in Toontown. It’s probably just a leftover setpiece, really.” As if to demonstrate, the rabbit gives the barrel a light kick, and it flies off like it’s being shot from a canon. After another moment, he violently jerks his attention back to Riku and Sora, wide-eyed and blushing.

“Where are my manners? I’m Roger, Roger Rabbit. Pleasure to meet you, fellas.” He sticks out a gloved hand towards each of them, which they both shake. This time, thankfully, there’s no dripping paint when they let go.

“I’m Sora, and this is my friend Riku,” Sora says, attempting to loop his arm around Riku’s shoulder. He’s a bit short for it, but Riku lets it drag him down closer to Sora’s height. They’re still nearly twice Roger’s height regardless, although the rabbit doesn’t seem intimidated by the difference at all.

“Nice to meet you,” Riku offers, and Roger nods, returning the sentiment.

“Say, is this your first time in Toontown? I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.” Roger asks, and Riku nods.

“A friend of ours suggested we visit. He said he thought we’d like it here.” So far, Sora seems to, at any rate, but then again, Riku’s sure he’s liked every World he’s visited. Generally, Sora tends to be pretty happy-go-lucky, and very easy to please.

“A friend? Would his name happen to be Eddie Valiant, by any chance?” Roger asks, eyes alight with excitement, but Sora shakes his head.

“No, actually it was King-  _ GAH _ !” Riku pokes Sora in the side, not hard enough to hurt but definitely enough to tickle, and it manages to shut Sora up.  _ World Order _ , Riku thinks in Sora’s general direction, and Sora seems to be able to read it in his eyes.

“King Gah? Can’t say I’ve ever heard of him. The only king I know is King Mickey,” Roger says, and Sora and Riku blink at him in confusion.

“You know the King?” Riku asks, and Roger nods enthusiastically.

“Everyone here knows Mickey! Why, he was just here a few years back when Doom was running around. I hope he visits again soon, I miss seeing Goofy’s cartoons.”

This seems to surprise Sora. “Goofy’s been in cartoons?”

Roger nods again, just as enthusiastically. Riku’s starting to wonder if he’s just always excited about everything. “Of course. No one takes a wallop like Goofy! What a genius!”

Having seen Goofy fight, and just existing in general, Riku’s not sure whether to feel bad that apparently, he takes a lot of hits when he’s in Toontown. What Riku finds hard to believe is Roger’s  _ genius  _ comment; Goofy’s nice and all, but Riku wouldn’t put him in charge of anything too important on the best of days. Then again, Goofy  _ is _ also captain of King Mickey’s knights, so maybe he’s more competent than he seems when Sora and Donald aren’t around.

“Say, fellas, why don’t I show you around Toontown? Any friend of Mickey’s is a friend of mine.” Roger says. Riku spares a glance at Sora, finding him already looking back at Riku. The excitement in his eyes is clear, so Riku nods, once. Sora beams right back.

* * *

Roger’s tour of Toontown turns out to be hectic and disorganized, to put it politely.

He leads them up and down Toontown seemingly at random, talking all the while, and often stopping to say hello to someone or other that he knows. The most confusing of these characters is a baby clad in only a diaper, with large blue eyes and a single tuft of blond hair, smoking a cigar, speaking with a voice undoubtedly befitting of a grown man. 

Roger introduces him as Baby Herman, and although he seems nice enough, something about him throws Riku off. Sora has no such qualms about him, it seems, although he takes a step back to avoid the smoke from Herman’s cigar.

Of all the places Roger takes them, though, it’s the Toontown theatre that takes them the longest. Perhaps spurred by the conversation with Sora about Goofy’s cartoon appearances, Roger buys tickets for the three of them to see a short called  _ Goofy Gymnastics _ . As he drones on about the cartoons playing in the theatre (“ _ it’s the only place in all of California where you can still watch black and white cartoons! _ ”) Roger somehow finds the breath to tell them that this particular cartoon is one of his favourites.

It’s entertaining enough, Riku supposes. Goofy getting home from work tired, ordering an exercise kit in the mail which arrives instantly, trying to follow along the narrated instructions and getting thrown around instead, both inside of his apartment, and out. Sora winces with most of the hits though and doesn’t laugh once through the whole short, in contrast to Roger who can’t seem to keep himself together as he shouts praises. 

Riku can see Sora itching to pull out his gummiphone, and rests a hand on his shoulder. Maybe it’s only Toontown and not the more realistic part of this World they were in before, but it’s like they’re technologically back by seventy years, and World Order still has to be maintained regardless.

After the short ends, they leave the theatre, and Roger discusses his own experience in cartoons- because they’re supposedly being led around by a film star, now, as unreal as he looks. Sora seems less nervous when he learns that Toons don’t really feel pain when performing some of their crazier stunts, for the most part, although he does wince when Roger demonstrates by smashing plates on his head a dozen times through. Thankfully, Roger has a short attention span, and is hyperactive about everything to boot, so the topic quickly moves on.

As the day drags on, Riku begins to wonder if they’re lost. Roger has told them at least thrice that they were on Gingerbread Lane, before proceeding to lead them onto a different street and declare the same thing, but eventually, he leads them down a long, dark tunnel, and into the fading daylight. Outside of Toontown, Roger looks offputtingly  _ fake _ , although Sora and Riku likely looked similar themselves while in Toontown.

They ride back into town on a red trolley car, which Sora and Riku pay for this time. King Mickey had had the foresight to warn them that munny wouldn’t get them very far in this World, and they’d brought some local currency with them instead. A nickel doesn’t seem like much for the half hour ride they get until Roger tugs them out of their seats and towards a door that reads  _ Mutual Broadcasting Studios _ . 

Standing just outside is a Toon woman, tall and red-haired, wearing a red evening gown. She crouches down to give Roger a kiss on the cheek when he approaches her.

“Riku, Sora, this is my wife, Jessica! Jessica, this is Riku and Sora. They’re friends with Mickey!” Roger says, and even despite leading them around all day, he’s still as energetic and loud as ever.

Jessica reaches out a hand, which Sora shakes, and then Riku. “Nice to meet you, gentlemen,” Jessica says. Her voice is smooth and sultry, and just as kind as Roger’s, even if her expression doesn’t quite match. “Would you like to come over for dinner?”

The four make their way back to Toontown in a roundabout way, going back through the torn up wall of the Acme building. Jessica and Roger don’t live far from the rolling fields, it seems, just in a small house with a carrot shaped welcome mat and a mailbox with a cursive  _ Rabbit _ painted along one side. Roger disappears into the hallway, although his excited voice carries into the kitchen, where Riku watches Sora and Jessica cook together. 

“I don’t think they’d like Toontown,” Roger says, presumably over the telephone. He pauses for a moment, then continues with his conversation. “Well, maybe Sora would, but I don’t think Riku will.” Another pause, as if whoever Roger is talking to is answering, and then, “don’t you still have that bed in your office, Eddie?”

Riku gets distracted from Roger’s voice by Jessica asking if he’d be so kind as to set the table, which in itself turns out to be quite the hassle. The table leaf is easy to find, and thankfully doesn’t have a face, but it takes Riku and Sora’s combined efforts to slot it into place and make the table big enough for four people to sit around. 

Even then, Riku takes a good whack to the chin when Sora accidentally puts too much strength into slotting it in place. It doesn’t hurt so much as it startles him, although Sora hovers for a moment, holding a hand out like he’s preparing to cast a cure spell.

Setting out the actual plates goes off without issue, and Roger joins them in the kitchen just as Jessica is bringing the salad over to rest in the center of the table. They take their seats at the table, Jessica at one end, Roger at the other, and Riku and Sora facing one another across both sides.

The conversation around the dinner table is easy and light, with Roger and Jessica asking how the King and Queen are doing, as well as Goofy and Donald, and Sora and Riku telling them about recent (mundane) happenings at Disney Castle. After dinner, Jessica serves them all carrot cake, and they move into the living room to eat it. Sora brings his own plate, and Riku’s, back into the kitchen once they’re done, despite Roger telling them he’s more than happy to do the dishes himself. Jessica entertains Sora with some sound effects and shrill voices while Roger’s busy, and by the time the sun is set and the dishes are all cleaned, Sora seems content and entertained, if a bit tired from the long day.

* * *

“My friend Eddie said you can stay at his place,” Roger tells them when it becomes clear that night has fallen and Sora and Riku are unsure where to go. “His office is across from the Red Car station. Here, let me just find the key.”

Roger and Jessica send them off with scrambled directions towards the tunnel out of Toontown, and tickets to see Roger’s newest cartoon the following evening.

Sora has little to no sense of direction without a solid point of reference, even when he’s fully awake. Riku knows this from their childhood on Destiny Islands, and also from the stories he’s heard about Deep Jungle and Arendelle. Riku, though, finds a map abord the trolley and is quick to seek out landmarks to help place where they are, and where they need to be. Just like Roger said, there’s a sign for  _ Valiant & Valiant _ on the apartment building across from the station where the trolley makes its final stop.

An office is the best way to really describe it, with the frosted glass door opening on two desks facing each other, a large filing cabinet along the wall opposite the desks, and smaller cabinets cluttered surrounding them. Sora finds the door across from them leads to a bathroom, and Riku realizes that there are stairs leading into a kitchen next to the largest cabinet. There’s not much in the way of food up there, although there is some oatmeal on the counter by the sink.

The bed turns out to be inside the giant cabinet, pulled down from what looks like the top drawers, except everything comes down. The bed inside is made with plain white sheets, although they’re dusty. Above the bed, inside the cabinet, a few pictures are hung up, all black-and-white photos. One is of two men in summer clothing, playing ukuleles on a beach, one is a dark haired woman with a sharp gaze, and one looks like a wedding photo, of the dark haired woman and the shorter man from the beach photo.

The bed is a double, but it’s the only one in the office. Riku feels a bit put out, but is about to willingly offer Sora take it when he shrugs at Riku nonchalantly.

“It can’t be worse than when we were kids,” Sora says, and Riku wishes he weren’t right. Sora used to insist on sharing Riku’s crummy old twin bed when he spent the night, which oftentimes ended in one or both of them falling off onto the floor due to the lack of space. On the rare occasions they slept through the night without incident, Riku always woke up to Sora nearly suffocating him, he’d grip on so tight. Staying at Sora’s wasn’t much better because his bed was underneath a window, and most nights Riku ended up pressed against the cold glass, unable to move without risking knocking Sora to the floor instead.

A double bed is at least a step up, and Sora’s not as restless a sleeper as he was at four years old. Riku’s pretty sure he could fall asleep anywhere if he tried hard enough, and he doesn’t seem to ever move in his sleep either.

“You sure?” Riku asks, as if he isn’t trying to talk himself out of it as he does. Sora’s his best friend, but they’re not really kids anymore, haven’t been for a long time. Besides, Sora’s not- he and Riku aren’t-.

But Sora just shrugs, an almost shy smile on his face. “I don’t care if you don’t,” he offers, and just like that, it seems like the decision’s made.

Sora at least has the common sense to take off his shoes before he flops onto the bed, and even hangs his jacket up on the coatrack by the door, before he faceplants into the pillow. He doesn’t move afterwards, until Riku nudges his shoulder to get him to turn his head, so his face isn’t obscured, but he’s already fast asleep. As always, he looks peaceful.

Riku lays down slowly, although it takes a lot to wake Sora. There’s less than half a foot between his left shoulder and Sora’s hand, curled up next to his head. Although he closes his eyes, and they grow heavy, too heavy to open, Riku remains aware of the passage of time for what feels like the whole night.

He supposes he’s not used to being so close to Sora anymore. His heart pangs in his chest at the thought.

* * *

Riku wakes up first, and it seems that at some point in the night he finally stopped thinking, because he’s surprised to find that Sora’s arm has moved to rest over his chest. Sora himself is more or less in the same position otherwise, although his head has turned so he’s facing towards Riku, and not away from him. He’s still deeply asleep, with crease marks from the pillow on his cheek and the crown pendant from his necklace digging sharply into his chin.

Riku lifts Sora’s arm so he can get out of bed, and Sora shuffles forward in his sleep like he’s seeking him out. The hand that was on Riku’s chest finds the other pillow almost immediately, and Sora pulls it to his chest, curling around it like he’s trying to keep it safe. Riku can feel the fond smile tugging at the corners of his lips, and lets it happen. No one’s around to see him mooning over Sora right now, anyway.

Quiet as he possibly can, Riku finds a kettle in the kitchen, and sets some water to boil on the stove for the oatmeal. The burners are gas but thankfully light themselves, so Riku doesn’t have to worry about digging through the Valiant & Valiant office too much to find matches. 

Two bowls are sitting next to the sink, clean, and he measures out the oatmeal for two servings. The kettle whistles when the water’s done boiling, and Sora is awake and sitting at the base of the stairs when Riku’s got the two bowls of oatmeal ready to be eaten. He takes his share from Riku with a smile, before plopping back down onto the bottom step. Riku sits next to him.

“Any plans for today?” Riku asks, and Sora shrugs.

“I think I’m gonna call Donald and Goofy in a bit, to let them know we made it. We kinda forgot last night,” Sora says. Riku guesses he might still want to make sure Goofy’s okay after the cartoon they saw yesterday, but doesn’t mention it. “We don’t know much about this world other than that we’re near Toontown. Maybe we could explore for a bit? We still need to figure out where the theater is, anyway.”

Sora’s right, of course, because while Roger gave them directions for the journey to Valiant & Valiant, he neglected to tell them where the theater was when he gave them the tickets. 

They find a solution when they’re getting some groceries, at Riku’s suggestion. He’d managed to snag a map while they’d been on the trolley again, but of course, there’s no marker for the Maroon Theatre, which is what they’re looking for.

“We really should have asked Roger,” Riku says, mostly to himself. Sora shrugs beside him, stepping closer to get a glance at the map himself. Not that he’d be able to understand much of it, given that it looks like a grid of streets and intersections. Riku’s half convinced he’s holding the thing upside down himself.

A red-headed woman taps Riku on the shoulder gently, and he and Sora both turn. She’s short, about Sora’s height, with a fluffy hairstyle and grass-green eyes. “What is it you’re trying to find?” The woman asks.

Sora chimes in immediately. “We were invited to the Maroon Theatre, but our friend didn’t tell us how to get there.”

The woman nods once, and tells them, “it’s just off Willoughby Avenue, here,” and she nods gently towards the map. Riku hands it to her, and she pulls a pen from her purse, making a small X mark on Cahuenga Boulevard, near the corner. “You’re going to see the new Roger Rabbit cartoon, then?” The woman asks, curiosity peeking into her voice.

“Yeah, how did you know?” Sora asks. The woman shrugs almost helplessly.

“It’s the last Maroon Cartoon to ever be released. I’m surprised it took Disney so long to finally put it out, everyone’s been waiting. Maroon put a lot into the marketing before he died.”

It’s an awkward conversation to have in a grocery store, but Riku and Sora manage to get the full, frankly rather confusing, story out of the woman. Wendy, they learn she’s named.

A few years back, RK Maroon owned a cartoon studio, where Roger worked. He was killed after a company called Cloverleaf bought his studio, before Cloverleaf up and disappeared, as if it had never existed. 

A friend of Maroon’s, Walt Disney, took on the task of finishing all of Maroon’s unreleased cartoons, in his name, even going so far as to convert the old studio into a movie theatre when no one else would buy it. After three long years, the final cartoon is finally seeing its debut, before all that’s left of Maroon Cartoons will be dissolved and passed along to anyone who wants a piece.

(Riku makes a note to ask the King later if he knows Walt Disney, because the fact that a man shares the name with his kingdom’s world is uncanny. Maybe they’re friends, or maybe Walt is from the Disney Castle, originally?)

With Wendy’s advice, though, Sora and Riku are able to make it to the theatre with plenty of time to spare, and Roger and Jessica are already waiting out front for them when they arrive. There’s still ten minutes before the scheduled start time when Roger leads the four of them to their seats.

* * *

The next morning, Riku wakes to one of Sora’s arms resting on his chest, and the other tightly gripping onto Riku’s left hand. Sora’s face is practically pressed into Riku’s shoulder.

He’s still dead asleep when Riku pulls himself free, face red and heart beating frantically. Riku escapes up into the kitchen to breathe.

The cartoon last night had been okay, if not crazier than  _ Goofy Gymnastics _ had been. Prepared for what kind of antics to expect, he and Sora at least were able to enjoy it, if Sora’s steady laughter throughout was any indication. Riku had cast a few sideways glances at Roger, but of course, the rabbit was totally fine. Jessica had caught him, the first time, after the on-screen version of Roger blindly wandered into a hot oven. He’d shot her an apologetic look and turned back to the screen. She didn’t bring it up again, even as she and Roger walked with Riku and Sora to the trolley station again.

Today, he and Sora will be going on their separate ways. Roger’s filming something at Disney Studios, and invited Sora to come by, since Disney’s the one who makes Goofy’s cartoons when he’s around. Donald and Mickey work with him too, if Roger’s to be believed. 

Riku will be going with Jessica, himself, around Toontown to run some errands. The four of them are all meeting there for breakfast within the hour, before they’ll split off into pairs.

Riku gets ready for the day before he wakes Sora, simply to save time. It takes him nearly fifteen minutes just to wake Sora, who grumbles and turns over and tries to escape Riku’s nudging until it becomes apparent that he’s not giving up. From there, it’s another ten minutes for Sora to be dressed and ready to go, and then they get to walk back to the Acme factory, again. 

“Maybe we should have stayed in Toontown after all,” Riku muses, and Sora shakes his head.

“Toontown’s nice, but I like the office, too. It’s quiet there.” Sora admits. Quiet is nice, Riku can agree to that.

The diner where they meet Roger and Jessica is quaint, and less hectic than the majority of Toontown. It’s within the rolling hills just behind the Acme factory, run out of a kind old toon woman’s home, and she calls Riku and Sora both dears as she brings them waffles and toast. Jessica pays their bill when they’re done, and then leads Riku back towards the centre of Toontown, while Roger and Sora head back towards the Acme factory. Sora gives Riku one last smile and waves over his shoulder as he goes, face bright and eyes wide.

“He’s cute,” Jessica comments, and Riku looks down. He can feel a light blush on his cheeks, from being caught staring, but Jessica just gives his shoulder a firm pat. “Tell me about him,” Jessica asks.

Riku finds it all too easy to talk about Sora, but Jessica seems like she knows what she wants to hear. “What do you see in him, though, Riku? What draws you to Sora?”

Riku shrugs. “I’ve always known him. My whole life, he’s been there.” They lapse into silence, and Riku can tell that Jessica is waiting for him to say more. “He’s my best friend,” is what Riku finally comes up with.

“Why?” Jessica asks, as if the answer is something  _ simple _ . As if Riku hasn’t been in love with Sora for so long that he’s just  _ everything _ . “Why did you seek him out, the first time? What did you see in him?”

Riku shakes his head, a grimace pulling at his lips. “I didn’t,” he admits. “Sora’s the one who came to me.” He’d been all of four years old, begging his grandmother to stay on the play island for longer, but she didn’t want to leave him alone and she’d had things to do. He’d run straight up to Riku, the oldest-looking kid on the play island that day, and latched onto him with both arms, declaring he’d stay with him. Somehow it had worked, and Riku spent the rest of the afternoon being followed by an energetic ball of sunshine, ever curious and never stopping for breath. 

The next few times they were both on the play island, Sora was the one to come to him, and after their fourth day of playing together, Riku found he looked forward to it. Sora was just...

It hits him all at once. “He made me laugh,” Riku muses. At five years old, that was the most important thing to look for in a friend. Jessica nods, and smiles.

“I know the feeling.”

“What about you and Roger? How did you meet?” Riku asks. They’re still walking, but Jessica leads them towards a little bakery. All the buildings around it are dark, but the windows of the bakery are brightly lit, nearly glowing.

Jessica spins a story of radio shows, a frantic Roger, and a precious photograph, which is shorter than the story Riku told. It’s only their first meeting, after all. “I wasn’t sure about him, at first,” Jessica admits, once she’s finished her story.

“What won you over?” Riku asks.

Jessica smiles. “He makes me laugh.”

* * *

Riku and Sora meet Eddie and Dolores Valiant on the afternoon of their fourth day in Toontown, just outside of the Acme factory. They had been called to meet there by Roger, because Eddie and Dolores were back in town and Roger insisted on introducing them. They’ve been invited out dancing, of all things.

Riku would never admit to feeling nervous about the invitation, although he knows nothing will come of it. He never had the courage to tell Sora how he feels, even when it mattered most. How could he admit he’s in love in a California dance hall, after  _ everything _ ?

It doesn’t help that once again, they found their way closer together as they slept. Sora awoke first for once, but his peeling himself off of Riku’s chest and letting him go was enough to wake Riku up, as a much lighter sleeper. For a moment, it had seemed like Sora was unable to meet Riku’s eyes, but then he’d sprung out of bed in one motion, pulling on his jacket and shoes and telling Riku he was going down the street to pick up a few eggs for their breakfast. 

He’d ended up cooking, too, which was something Riku didn’t remember him being able to do. The omelets were beyond amazing, of course, because Sora never did anything in halves.

They spend the rest of the morning around the office, having short bursts of conversation and sending messages to their friends. Kairi tells them both that she wants photos of them with Roger and Jessica, even specifying that she means all four of them  _ together _ . Sora is quick to send her back a promise for photos, but Riku’s response is a reminder of the World Order rules.

_ they have their own cameras there, don’t they? _ is Kairi’s response a moment later, and Riku realizes she’s right.

_ The photo won’t be in colour, though, _ he warns, before putting his phone away.

After lunch, they go straight to the Acme factory, where Jessica and Roger are already waiting with two unfamiliar humans. It doesn’t take a detective to figure out that they must be Eddie and Dolores.

They remind Riku a bit of Roger and Jessica, in human form. Dolores is nearly a full head taller than her husband, wearing her heeled shoes, and dressed in a long red skirt with a matching coat. She even has a purple hat balanced on her head. Eddie is short and stout, though still taller than Sora, and not quite put together. His suit jacket is unbuttoned and open for the wind to catch, his tie is crooked, and the collar of his shirt is open at the very top. They’re still not as much of an odd couple as Roger and Jessica, at least.

Dolores shakes both of their hands as Roger enthusiastically introduces them, one hand reaching back to pat their elbows as she does. Eddie’s handshake is cleaner, just a quick shake and then drop, although he gives Sora a once over, before shooting a look at Riku.

“Where’d you find this one, the circus?” He asks. There’s nothing malicious in his voice, he’s only asking a question, but Riku narrows his eyes.

Dolores steps in, however, giving her husband a tap on the shoulder. “Oh, hush, Eddie. They’re from out of town, and it’s not like you’re about to go have lunch with the president dressed like that either.” Eddie, for his part, gives her a nod and shoots and apologetic smile at Sora and Riku. 

“We ought to get you two some nice clothes for the dance hall tonight, though,” Dolores continues, first fixing Sora’s hood and then looking Riku up and down. “Eddie, we still have one of Teddy’s suits at home, don’t we? You take Riku and see if it’ll fit, I’ll get Sora something to wear.”

Just like that, they’re led off in different directions. Roger follows along with Eddie and Riku, talking a mile a minute about what Eddie’s missed while he was gone, and Jessica follows Dolores as she drags Sora away.

It turns out that Eddie and Dolores’ home is in the same building as the Valiant & Valiant office, but two floors up and across the hall. This apartment feels like a proper home, with the front door opening to a sitting room, stairs up to the kitchen, and doors that presumably lead to the bedroom and bathroom respectively. Next to the kitchen stairs is another door, which Eddie opens, while Roger bounces on the couch, still talking. This door turns out to be a linen closet, and at the bottom is a green metal trunk, with  _ Valiant, T. _ stenciled on in white paint. Eddie pulls it out and opens it up.

The first few items he pulls out are dusty knick-knacks, like a wooden block with the name  _ Theodore J. Valiant _ painted onto one side, a small wooden doll, dull with age, and some glasses. With the smaller items out of the way, Eddie pulls out a white shirt, a brown waistcoat and matching trousers, and finally, a dark grey tie. He folds them neatly into a stack which he then carefully passes to Riku, almost hesitantly.

“Why don’t you try that one for size,” he says softly, then points to one of the doors across the hall. “Bathroom’s over there. Dolores keeps the clean towels under the sink.”

When Riku closes the bathroom door, it’s as if he closes off the rest of the world, just for a moment. Then Roger’s voice picks up, asking Eddie about a camera, and Riku turns away from the door. He finds one of the towels like Eddie told him to, and uses it to wash his face before he begins to change.

The clothes fit him well, for the most part, although the loose sleeves on the shirt throw him off a bit. The outfit coordinates itself well, though, with the waistcoat and tie hiding how loose the shirt is on Riku. He supposes the waist on the trousers could be a bit lower, it feels almost like they rise up to his chest, but he finds the man staring back at him in the mirror looks... almost good? His hair is a lost cause, of course, as far as trying to slick it down or back, but he can at least push his bangs off to one side.

He imagines wherever they are, Dolores is probably losing patience with Sora’s brunet spikes about now.

* * *

Eddie and Roger lead Riku to the dance hall and head straight inside, not bothering to wait for the other half of their party. The girls and Sora have already beaten them there, anyway.

Riku physically stops mid-step when he catches sight of Sora, because saying he cleans up nice would be an understatement. Sora almost looks like a different person, in the suit Dolores must’ve found him. It’s a dark grey colour, matching Riku’s tie almost perfectly, with a dark red shirt, and instead of a tie, his crown necklace takes pride of place at his collar. Dolores seems to also have found him  _ sensible shoes _ , although Riku’s still in his own boots. 

Even Sora’s hair is presentable for once, the spikes somehow tamed down and glossy looking, his hair parted down the centre and brushed back behind his ears. It leaves the entirety of his face fully visible for all to see, and the bright smile he wears is certainly worth seeing.

“Wow, Sora,” Roger says, “you look amazing!”

Sora ducks his head, and reaches up like he’s going to rub the back of his neck, then flinches a bit when his fingers brush against his hair. Whatever’s holding it down and making it gloss like that must feel weird, because he tries to subtly wipe his hand on the side of his trousers. Dolores gives him a stern look, though, and he chuckles nervously.

“Thanks, Roger,” he finally says, after a moment, then holds his elbow out to the rabbit. “Shall we?”

They all follow Roger and Sora into the dance hall, pausing only long enough to pay their admission into the dance. They enter mid-song, and Roger is already dancing as soon as he hears the music. 

Sora ends up being dragged along for the ride, laughing all the while. It could be out of genuine amusement, or he could be laughing at Roger. The rabbit’s definition of dancing, it seems, consists of tugging his partner along as he steps in place and jumps in turn. Sora’s own dancing is bouncy as it is, matching both Roger’s efforts and also the rhythm of the song. Roger nearly falls over when the song ends, while Sora looks as energetic as ever.

“Glad to see so many happy faces,” a voice calls from the front of the room. “That was  _ Good Rocking Tonight _ by Roy Brown. Up next, we’ve got Kay Kaiser with  _ Jingle, Jangle, Jingle _ . Remember that requests are open tonight, folks, so don’t be shy.”

Roger perks up once the music starts again, turning to Jessica to dance with this time. When Riku looks around, he spies the Valiants talking to some friends near the front of the room. Sora, meanwhile, sticks in the corner near Riku, dancing on his own. He shoots a bright grin at Riku when he catches him watching. Riku abruptly turns away.

Sora dances with the others, as the evening wears on, letting them pull him along as they fancy. Roger switches with him after a couple of dances, leaving Sora with Jessica for a song called  _ Anything Goes _ . Then Jessica cuts in with Eddie, and Dolores asks Riku for a dance. When he declines, as politely as he can, she turns to Sora instead. They start mid-song, but once it ends, Dolores keeps a hand on Sora’s elbow, saying something. From across the room, Riku can’t hear her, but given Sora’s nod and the fact they stay where they are, he assumes they’re going to dance another song together.

“We’ve got a special treat for all you Rodgers and Hammerstein fans here tonight. Our first request is Tex Beneke with  _ A Wonderful Guy _ .” The announcer, Travis, calls, before the music resumes once again.

As they dance, Dolores and Sora both seem to be in sync, matching steps and not stumbling or messing up. Otherwise, they look completely indifferent, although Riku can see they’re talking quietly. 

Dolores’ attention seems mostly focused on Eddie, though, back against the wall with a glass of water now that Jessica’s set him free. She watches him with pure fondness and smiles widely at him when she catches his eye. Eddie smiles back. 

When Riku turns back to Dolores and Sora, he watches them spin, and ends up getting a direct line of sight at Sora’s face. He’s looking back at Riku with almost the same expression Dolores wore when looking at Eddie.

Riku holds his eyes for as long as he can, willing himself not to blush. Sora’s got a soft smile, his eyes fond, and he says something to Dolores after a moment which leads her to pat his arm softly. Then he tears his eyes away from Riku, and Riku takes his chance to get a glass of water.

The songs ends while he’s still by the canteen, and this time, Jessica takes the stage beside Travis. “We have another request, folks, this time from Mr. and Mrs. Eddie Valiant! Jessica Rabbit will be singing for us, here’s  _ Why Don’t You Do Right _ .”

Dolores and Eddie make their way right to the front of the stage just before Jessica starts singing, pressed together securely as they dance. Their focus is entirely on each other as they dance. Jessica’s voice is nice to listen to, as well, soft and sweet and sultry, just a touch higher than her speaking voice.

Sora slides away from the canteen with his own glass of water in hand, settling against the wall next to Riku. He knocks their shoulders together once, firmly but not strong enough to knock Riku about, and when Riku looks at him, he’s smiling again.

“Having fun?” Riku asks, as if the question isn’t redundant. Sora nods anyway, not seeming to mind.

“Always. You don’t seem to be, though, all alone in the corner.” His tone is kind, not accusing in any way, but Riku still feels almost guilty. He has been a bit of a wallflower all night, Sora’s right.

“I’m having plenty of fun,” Riku says, grateful that it comes out sounding playful. “Besides, someone has to keep track of you so you don’t get lost. Should’ve asked Dolores for some heels.”

Sora gives Riku a good-natured glare, but he’s still smiling. “You could keep a better eye on me if you were dancing too, you know,” he says softly. Riku shakes his head.

“You’ve been dancing enough for the two of us,” he says, but Sora has that determined look in his eye- like he’s made a decision he can’t be talked out of. Riku’s a sucker, because he knows it’ll be about dancing, and he knows he won’t be able to say no, not really.

“C’mon,” Sora starts, “one dance, that’s it. Please?” He looks up at Riku with his most pleading puppy dog eyes, and Riku holds out for a few moments, just to build some tension, before he finally smiles and nods.

“Just the one dance, though,” he says solemnly, and Sora nods enthusiastically.

“Alright, Riku!”

Jessica’s song ends, and Travis thanks her for the performance. She whispers something to him, and Travis grins, before walking up to the microphone again. “Alright, ladies and gents, grab onto that special someone and make your way onto the floor, we’ve got a slow one coming up next. Here’s Marjorie Hughes singing  _ One More Tomorrow _ .”

Riku should expect it, but his stomach still swoops when Sora tugs him forward by the arm, one hand on his wrist and the other on his elbow, grip firm and insistent. “Hey!” Riku protests, and he suddenly regrets his lack of ability to say no to Sora, even just once. “Sora!”

“You promised me one dance, Riku, and this is the dance!” Sora says, not looking back. His voice is bright as ever, but there’s something on the edge of it. Is he  _ nervous _ ?

He won’t quite meet Riku’s eyes as they find a spot on the dance floor, although it seems intentional when he practically presses his face into Riku’s shoulder before starting to sway to the piano. While dancing with Dolores and Jessica, it had been obvious that they weren’t together; Sora had kept them practically at arm’s length, but he can’t seem to get close enough to Riku. 

Riku, for his part, hesitates for a few moments about where to hold Sora, before eventually wrapping one arm around his shoulders and the other cupping the back of his head. His face feels red, and he’s sure it is. At least with his face pressed to Riku’s shoulder, Sora can’t see it.

_ One more tomorrow, to hold you in my embrace. And thrill with rapture, each time I look at your face. _

Riku leads the dance awkwardly, not quite sure what to do other than to sway back and forth in time to the music. After a few moments, Sora shifts in his arms, holding out a hand for Riku to take. He moves the hand cupping Sora’s head, and Sora laces their fingers together. 

He looks up at Riku, and there’s something in his eyes Riku can’t name, even as he stares back. A soft smile finds it’s way onto Sora’s face, tugging gently at his lips.

_ One more tomorrow, to kiss your lips constantly. And feel the pounding, as your heart beats next to me. One more tomorrow, filled with love the whole day through. And then tomorrow I'd beg, for one more tomorrow with you. _

Leave it to Sora to convince Riku to dance with him to a love song, while hiding the fact he’s utterly and totally in love with him. And it would be so easy to tell Sora right now, if he truly wanted to. He just has to open his mouth and say those three little words. He thinks he wants to. His heart is begging for it.

Before Riku gets the chance, Sora pulls him down, and kisses him. Time stops, just for a second, before Riku’s brain realizes what’s happening and he pulls Sora closer. He can feel himself smile into the kiss. It’s short and sweet, barely longer than a few seconds, before they pull apart together.

“I love you,” Riku says, the words coming easier than he could have ever dreamed. Sora smiles, and presses his face into Riku’s shoulder again. He mumbles something, which Riku is unable to make out. “Sora?” He asks gently, but he just shakes his head. He has a feeling he knows what Sora’s said, anyway.

They stay there for what seems like forever, as the other dancers move on and the song continues to change, swaying to a melody only they can hear. It’s perfect, Riku thinks. 

_ I love you, _ he thinks, and holds Sora closer.

_ I love you, _ and Sora clings tighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, fun fact: there are a lot of references in this fic. Mostly to Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and the first draft script of the cancelled follow-up, but also to other things too. In my Google Docs file, I had so many comments explaining everything. Maybe I'll add a note in the comments with every single reference I intentionally made? A virtual hug for anyone who guesses one of the references on their own, too!
> 
> ALSO ALSO because it only occurs to me when I read that section again and then I always completely forget, I'm making it canon that Eddie totally brought that camera to the dance and got a glorious photo of Sora and Riku dancing right after their kiss, which is among the photos they bring back for Kairi when they leave Toontown.
> 
> If anyone wants to scream in my general direction, my twitter is @elouesse


	2. Reference list!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A handy-dandy list of all the references I made throughout _One More Tomorrow_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So my laptop's ssd died and I had to get it replaced. Which, wasn't great, but I've got it back now so I thought I'd use my restored access to Google Docs to share all the references from the story with anyone who was interested.

_ “I have some old friends there,” he admits with a smile, “from some of my own trips.”  _

  * Mickey Mouse appears twice in _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_ ; once while skydiving with Bugs Bunny when Eddie falls out of the Toontown apartment building, and again at the very end of the film, wondering who Judge Doom really was.



_ Goofy reminisces on it with Sora the night before he leaves, telling him about some trouble he found himself in the middle of, and the pair of detective brothers who helped him out of it.  _

_ Valiant, he claims their names were, and tells Sora that they’re always ready to help if he needs it. Donald, on the other hand, grows grumpy at the mention, and grumbles something about a piano and a little black duck. Sora doesn’t pry with that one, although he does wonder if Donald is any good at playing the piano. _

  * Goofy was (somehow) brought up on spy charges during WWII, and this is shown through a newspaper clipping in the sweep of Eddie's office in the film. Valiant and Valiant were the ones to help him.
    * There's also a paper mentioning them saving Donald's nephews when they were kidnapped but I didn't find a way to mention it so I left it out.
  * Donald and Daffy Duck have a piano competition in the Ink and Paint Club, just before Jessica's performance. It gets heated.



_ “He said he was friends with a rabbit, or maybe it was an insect? Apparently he was a lot of trouble.” _

  * One of Bugs' lines in _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_ was "ain't I a stinker?"
  * This line would also have been reused as the final spoken line of dialogue, in the 1991 first draft script of the abandoned follow-up film, _Roger Rabbit 2: The Toon Platoon_ , which was actually planned to be a prequel.



_ The biggest indicator for where they are is an empty looking building with a faded white sign reading ACME, which sounds at least a bit familiar. King Mickey mentioned a factory being near Toontown, practically on top of it, really, although this doesn’t look like much of a factory more than just a warehouse.  _

  * The Acme Factory was directly in front of Toontown in the film, revealed when Doom's truck crashed through the back wall of the factory.



_ Bright colours and swaying trees exist beyond the gaping hole, and the only word Riku can think of to describe them is  _ drawn _. They move just as naturally as he and Sora do, and Riku’s is almost entirely sure that they’re  _ singing.

  * When entering Toontown, dancing, singing trees are there to greet newcomers. They're seen both when Eddie enters Toontown through the tunnels while trying to find Roger, and also when the Acme factory wall is torn open.



_ Riku catches up to Sora once the grassy hills and swaying, hugging trees give way to something similar to a street, with lopsided buildings and chaos abound. Some of the buildings have faces, which watch Sora and Riku curiously.  _

  * When Eddie enters Toontown proper, some of the buildings do indeed have faces, and chaos does indeed abound. Being that they're toons, things generally seem to be quite zany around Toontown.



_ A white rabbit approaches, in red overalls and yellow gloves, a blue and yellow dotted bow tie around his neck. He’s fumbling his balance on top of a barrel labeled TURPENTINE, eyes wide as he realizes which direction he’s headed. _

  * Disney's Pop Century resort in Florida has a statue of Roger Rabbit standing atop a barrel of turpentine.



_ "...We don’t need any more Dip.” _

  * The ingredients of Dip in the film were turpentine, acetone, and benzine, which were traditionally used as paint thinners on animation cells back in the day.
  * Acetone is still commonly used as nail polish remover, either diluted for home use or in a stronger form in salons, especially for gel and shellac manicures.



_ “Everyone here knows Mickey! Why, he was just here a few years back when Doom was running around. I hope he visits again soon, I miss seeing Goofy’s cartoons.” _

  * Doom running around AKA the plot of _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_
  * While hiding from Doom and his Weasels in a movie theatre, Roger and Eddie watch _Goofy Gymnastics_.



_ “Of course. No one takes a wallop like Goofy! What a genius!” _

  * This is nearly word-for-word Roger's commentary while watching _Goofy Gymnastics_.



_ Roger introduces him as Baby Herman, and although he seems nice enough, something about him throws Riku off. _

  * This isn't so much a reference as me pushing my feelings through Riku's point of view. I don't know what it is, maybe that angry mime act when Raoul is yelling at Roger about the birds VS stars thing in the first scene, but Baby Herman has always rubbed me the wrong way.



_ Perhaps spurred by the conversation with Sora about Goofy’s cartoon appearances, Roger buys tickets for the three of them to see a short called  Goofy Gymnastics . As he drones on about the cartoons playing in the theatre (“ _ it’s the only place in all of California where you can still watch black and white cartoons! ” _ ) Roger somehow finds the breath to tell them that this particular cartoon is one of his favourites. _

  * Betty Boop has a line in the Ink and Paint Club about work being slow since cartoons went to colour, but I like to imagine that Toons would like seeing theirs and their friend's old cartoons, regardless of whether they were in colour or black and white.
  * Roger's got a very deep respect for Goofy and his cartoons, even if the mention of it is very brief. _Goofy Gymnastics_ would either be his favourite cartoon, or he'd have a new favourite every time he went to the theatre.



_ Roger has told them at least thrice that they were on Gingerbread Lane, before proceeding to lead them onto a different street and declare the same thing, but eventually, he leads them down a long, dark tunnel, and into the fading daylight. _

  * Roger is canonically a terrible driver, since he leaves a lot of damage in his wake, and also somehow leaves Toontown after Eddie and Jessica have been kidnapped, despite stealing Eddie's car and leaving before them.
  * Jessica also seems to not have a great sense of direction, since when she and Eddie chase Doom down, she tells Eddie they'll take Gingerbread Lane to leave but ends up pointing in the wrong direction.



_ A nickel doesn’t seem like much for the half hour ride they get until Roger tugs them out of their seats and towards a door that reads  _ Mutual Broadcasting Studios _.  _

  * In the 1991 first draft of the follow-up, Eddie directs Roger to this studio when he asks about it after hearing a radio serial which Jessica acted in.
  * In the film, Eddie confirms the price of the Red Car fare to Doom when the freeway plan is revealed to him.



_ Another pause, as if whoever Roger is talking to is answering, and then, “don’t you still have that bed in your office, Eddie?” _

  * In the film, Eddie actively lives out of his office, sleeping in the hideabed and washing his clothing in his kitchen sink.



_ Even then, Riku takes a good whack to the chin when Sora accidentally puts too much strength into slotting it in place. It doesn’t hurt so much as it startles him, although Sora hovers for a moment, holding a hand out like he’s preparing to cast a cure spell. _

  * As Eddie's time in Toontown proves, cartoon physics have no mercy.



_ “His office is across from the Red Car station. Here, let me just find the key.” _

  * Both the Red Car and the bar Dolores worked at were directly across from Eddie's office in the film.



_ Roger and Jessica send them off with scrambled directions towards the tunnel out of Toontown, and tickets to see Roger’s newest cartoon the following evening. _

  * The tunnel into Toontown was later reused for _Back to the Future 2_ , but it was discovered by Zemeckis while scouting locations for _Roger Rabbit_.
  * Roger's "newest cartoon" here is the one that's being filmed at the beginning of _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_ , a cartoon called _Something's Cooking_ , as I imagined it would not have been finished following RK Maroon's death, though I reused it because I didn't like the other Roger Rabbit cartoons Disney made in the 90s.



_ Riku knows this from their childhood on Destiny Islands, and also from the stories he’s heard about Deep Jungle and Arendelle. _

  * This is less a reference and more some personal venting. _Deep Jungle_ is bad enough with a functioning DualShock, but of course I spent two hours in there with a defective L stick so Sora either stuttered in place or _didn't move at all_. At least I had a new DualShock when I got to _Arendelle_.



_Just like Roger said, there’s a sign for_ Valiant & Valiant _on the apartment building across from the station where the trolley makes its final stop._

  * Eddie never changed the signs after his brother's death and since he and Dolores are married in this fic, and also she's shown to have been working with them when they first opened the agency, the signs would technically be accurate again in the fic.



_ The bed turns out to be inside the giant cabinet, pulled down from what looks like the top drawers, except everything comes down. The bed inside is made with plain white sheets, although they’re dusty. Above the bed, inside the cabinet, a few pictures are hung up, all black-and-white photos. One is of two men in summer clothing, playing ukuleles on a beach, one is a dark haired woman with a sharp gaze, and one looks like a wedding photo, of the dark haired woman and the shorter man from the beach photo. _

  * Eddie's hideabed is a thing of wonder. He also _does_ in fact keep pictures hung up inside the frame in the film.
  * While the photos in this fic are different, they're important photos to Eddie.
    * The first is Eddie and his brother in Catalina, as shown in the film when Eddie develops the photos of Jessica and Acme.
    * The second is of Dolores.
    * The third is Eddie and Dolores' wedding photo; back then, you only really had the one wedding photo.



_ “I don’t care if you don’t,” he offers, and just like that, it seems like the decision’s made. _

  * This is actually a reference to Green Day's _Jesus of Suburbia_ , specifically the _I Don't Care_ moment of the song. There's also a moment in the song called _Dearly Beloved_ , which is why I made this reference.



_ Sora himself is more or less in the same position otherwise, although his head has turned so he’s facing towards Riku, and not away from him. He’s still deeply asleep, with crease marks from the pillow on his cheek and the crown pendant from his necklace digging sharply into his chin. _

  * Sora's necklace, which is loose in other games, practically became a choker in KH3. Also, he seems to be the same kind of idiot I am, meaning the only time I've ever seen him without the necklace is as a small child or in Atlantica, meaning he probably keeps the thing on even as he sleeps.
  * Also, yes, if you're wondering, I do follow the theory that Riku was the one to give Sora the crown necklace.



_ He’d managed to snag a map while they’d been on the trolley again, but of course, there’s no marker for the Maroon Theatre, which is what they’re looking for. _

  * On the site of the former Maroon Cartoon Studio, not far from the Acme building.
  * This is based on the idea that the studio was converted into a theatre following Maroon's death, especially since Cloverleaf was run by Doom who would also be gone after the film ends.



_ Riku hands it to her, and she pulls a pen from her purse, making a small X mark on Cahuenga Boulevard, near the _ corner.

  * The studio which stood in for Maroon Cartoon Studios, Desilu (now RED), is located at 846 Cahuenga Blvd.



_ It’s an awkward conversation to have in a grocery store, but Riku and Sora manage to get the full, frankly rather confusing, story out of the woman. Wendy, they learn she’s named. _

  * Wendy was named after Wendy Rowan, Jessica's human roommate in the 1991 first draft script.



_ “He’s my best friend,” is what Riku finally comes up with. _

  * Reference to _Birth by Sleep_ where Sora tells Aqua the same thing about Riku.



_ Jessica spins a story of radio shows, a frantic Roger, and a precious photograph, which is shorter than the story Riku told. _

  * In the 1991 draft, Roger rungs into the radio studio while Jessica's recording, and ends up leaving without the photo of his mother that he'd had with him. Jessica follows him out to give it back.



_ “He made me laugh,” Riku muses. / Jessica smiles. “He makes me laugh.” _

  * These are both references to Jessica saying this to Eddie in the film when he asked her what she saw in Roger.



_ He’d ended up cooking, too, which was something Riku didn’t remember him being able to do. _

  * Those cooking minigames in KH3 are fun.



_ Kairi tells them both that she wants photos of them with Roger and Jessica, even specifying that she means all four of them  _ together . _ Sora is quick to send her back a promise for photos, but Riku’s response is a reminder of the World Order rules. _

  * I really like the Destiny Trio and wanted to write Kairi also exploring Toontown but it didn't work out. Maybe someday.



_ Dolores is nearly a full head taller than her husband, wearing her heeled shoes, and dressed in a long red skirt with a matching coat. She even has a purple hat balanced on her head. Eddie is short and stout, though still taller than Sora, and not quite put together. His suit jacket is unbuttoned and open for the wind to catch, his tie is crooked, and the collar of his shirt is open at the very top. _

  * This is a reference mostly to Dolores' outfit from the very end of the film, but also to how Eddie is so disheveled throughout the film as a whole. I imagine once he's happy and he and Dolores are married, he'd be less messy, but still not quite a "proper" man.



_ “Where’d you find this one, the circus?” _

  * This line from Eddie is actually a reference to one of the photos in the Valiant and Valiant office, of Eddie and his brother visiting with their father, who was a clown for Wringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey in 1905.



_ “Eddie, we still have one of Teddy’s suits at home, don’t we? You take Riku and see if it’ll fit, I’ll get Sora something to wear.” _

  * In the film, Eddie's brother's name is revealed to be Theodore J. Valiant, and he calls him Teddy when he tells Roger what happened to him in the theatre.
  * Also, in the film Eddie keeps Teddy's desk exactly as it was when he last left it, albeit coated in a very generous layer of dust from the years gone by.



_ This door turns out to be a linen closet, and at the bottom is a green metal trunk, with  Valiant, T. stenciled on in white paint. Eddie pulls it out and opens it up. _

_ The first few items he pulls out are dusty knick-knacks, like a wooden block with the name Theodore J. Valiant painted onto one side, a small wooden doll, dull with age, and some glasses. With the smaller items out of the way, Eddie pulls out a white shirt, a brown waistcoat and matching trousers, and finally, a dark grey tie. _

  * Since Eddie and his brother both were police officers before opening their agency, they'd likely have had military style trunks from that time. It's also possible they served in the military at one time, given they were alive during both WWI and WWII.
  * The outfit Eddie gives Riku is based on the photo of Eddie, Teddy, and Dolores when they opened the agency in 1934.



_ Sora ducks his head, and reaches up like he’s going to rub the back of his neck, then flinches a bit when his fingers brush against his hair. Whatever’s holding it down and making it gloss like that must feel weird, because he tries to subtly wipe his hand on the side of his trousers. _

  * Pomade would have been commonly used in 1950 in men's hair, and is both very shiny and also pretty slimy feeling.



_ Sora’s own dancing is bouncy as it is, matching both Roger’s efforts and also the rhythm of the song. _

  * Seeing him dancing in Corona was so adorable. He bounces!



_“Glad to see so many happy faces,” a voice calls from the front of the room. “That was_ Good Rocking Tonight _by Roy Brown. Up next, we’ve got Kay Kaiser with_ Jingle, Jangle, Jingle _. Remember that requests are open tonight, folks, so don’t be shy.”_

  * The announcer, aptly named Travis, is based on Travis "Lonely" Miles from _Fallout 4,_ specifically his more confident speech patterns after finishing the Confidence Man quest.
  * _Good Rocking_ _Tonight_ can he heard over Travis' station, Diamond City Radio, throughout _Fallout 4_.
  * Similarly, _Jingle, Jangle, Jingle_ can be heard over Radio New Vegas throughout _Fallout: New Vegas_. It's also the game's unofficial theme song, having been used in the E3 trailer for the game back in 2010.
  * All songs in this section have appeared in either _Fallout: New Vegas_ or _Fallout 4_ , since I have a major dieselpunk streak in me and also I really like the songs you can hear on the radio in-game.



_ Roger switches with him after a couple of dances, leaving Sora with Jessica for a song called  Anything Goes. _

  * _Anything_ _Goes_ is a song about standards being lower and stuff passing that normally wouldn't, back during the Great Depression.
  * The version sung by Cole Porter also featured on Diamond City Radio in _Fallout 4_.



_ “We’ve got a special treat for all you Rodgers and Hammerstein fans here tonight. Our first request is Tex Beneke with  _ A Wonderful Guy _.” The announcer, Travis, calls, before the music resumes once again. _

  * I chose _A Wonderful Guy_ here because of the conversation between Eddie and Dolores in the theatre during the film, where he tells her to find a good man and she insists that she already has one.
  * _A Wonderful_ _Guy_ as featured in _Fallout 4_ is only performed by Tex Beneke, as the singer cannot be confirmed.
  * Again, Travis is named for his counterpart from Diamond City Radio.
  * Originally, I was going to have Sora and Riku dance to _A Wonderful Guy_ , due to the line about being "gay as a daisy in May," but found I preferred _One More Tomorrow_.



_ “We have another request, folks, this time from Mr. and Mrs. Eddie Valiant! Jessica Rabbit will be singing for us, here’s  _ Why Don’t You Do Right . _ ” _

  * This is the same song as Jessica sings in the Ink and Paint Club in the film. 
  * Funnily enough, another version, sung by Peggy Lee, appears in _Fallout: New Vegas_.



_ “Alright, ladies and gents, grab onto that special someone and make your way onto the floor, we’ve got a slow one coming up next. Here’s Marjorie Hughes singing  _ One More Tomorrow . _ ” _

  * _One More Tomorrow_ is the more romantic song I could think of from all of the _Fallout_ games I've played, in a lineup of songs mostly about radioactivity, money, and partying. There are a few other romantic or cute songs, but this is the sweetest.
  * While _A Wonderful Guy_ and _One More Tomorrow_ were my top choices here, I considered looking up the lyrics to some of the original Lynda Carter songs from _Fallout 4_. However, since I ended up choosing a specific year for the setting of this fic (1950), I limited myself to songs with recordings from 1950 or earlier, and those Lynda Carter songs would canonically be from the 2270s.




End file.
